Abstract
Background:
Stroke is the second leading cause of death and the third leading cause of disability worldwide, with global economic costs exceeding US $890 billion annually and a projected 50% rise in deaths between 2020 and 2050. So far, stroke has been addressed within the World Health Organization (WHO) Global Noncommunicable Disease (NCD) Action Plan 2023–2030 and the Intersectoral Global Action Plan on Epilepsy and Other Neurological Disorders 2022–2031, but until now, no World Health Assembly resolution has been specifically dedicated to stroke.
Objectives:
To present the first WHO Resolution specifically dedicated to stroke (EB158/CONF./9), describe its content and significance, and analyze its implications for global public health.
Methods:
This article presents and analyzes resolution EB158/CONF./9—“Reducing the burden of stroke: strengthening prevention, acute care, rehabilitation and health-system readiness”, as advanced by the WHO Executive Board at its 158th session on 3 February 2026 and adopted by the Member States in the Seventy-ninth World Health Assembly.
Key content of the resolution:
In February 2026, the 158th session of the WHO Executive Board advanced the first WHO resolution dedicated to stroke, proposed by Egypt and co-sponsored by Chile, Georgia, Palestine, Paraguay, and Tunisia, and adopted by Member States at the Seventy-ninth World Health Assembly. The resolution frames stroke as a continuum of care and sets out 16 operative actions for Member States (OP1), organized under three categories: (1) primary interventions across the prevention spectrum; (2) acute care and rehabilitation; and (3) surveillance and data; all underpinned by a health-system strengthening approach. A further eight requests to the Director-General (OP2) provide WHO’s mandate to act, covering normative guidance, technical support, monitoring, research, medicine access, regional cooperation, and progress reporting.
Public health implication:
The resolution establishes a comprehensive stroke action plan across the full continuum of care. Its legacy will depend not on its adoption in Geneva but on whether political commitment is matched by sustained implementation, investment, robust monitoring, and accountability grounded in stroke-specific indicators.
Keywords
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